{"conversationCode":"359-016","tapeNumber":359,"conversationNumber":16,"identifier":"37-wht-conversation-359-016","startDateTime":"1972-09-16T17:15:00.000Z","endDateTime":"1972-09-16T17:32:00.000Z","startDate":"16-Sep-1972","startTime":"1:15 PM","endDate":"16-Sep-1972","endTime":"1:32 PM","dateCertainty":"certain","timeCertainty":"estimated","participants":"Nixon, Richard M. (President); Kissinger, Henry A.; Bull, Stephen B.;","description":"On September 16, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon, Henry A. Kissinger, and Stephen B. Bull met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 1:15 pm and 1:32 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 359-016 of the White House Tapes.","locationCode":"EOB","recordingDevice":"Old Executive Office Building","latitudeEstimated":38.897567,"longitudeEstimated":-77.039147,"chronCode":4,"chronRelease":"Fourth Chronological Release","chronReleaseDate":"10-Dec-2003","aogpRelease":null,"aogpSegment":null,"lastModified":"2015-07-27T17:04:10.235Z","findingAid":"Conversation No. 359-16\n\nDate: September 16, 1972\nTime: Unknown between 1:15 pm and 1:32 pm\nLocation: Executive Office Building\n\nThe President met with Henry A. Kissinger.\n\n             Vietnam negotations\n\n                                        (rev. Oct-06)\n\n                  -Kissinger's trip\n                  -Security\n                      -Media\n                  -Kissinger's conversation with North Vietnamese officals\n                  -Future meetings\n                      -Timing\n                           -The President’s forthcoming International Monetary Fund [IMF]\n                           speech\n                  -North Vietnam\n                      -Settlement\n                  -Nguyen Van Thieu\n                      -Ellsworth F. Bunker\n                  -Announcement of Kissinger’s trip\n                      -H.R. (“Bob”) Haldeman\n                           -Timing\n                  -Robert C. Toth’s recent conversation with Kissinger\n                      -Los Angeles Times\n                      -Kissinger’s recent press briefing\n                      -Le Duc Tho\n                           -The President’s re-election\n\nStephen B. Bull entered at an unknown time after 1:15 pm.\n\n             The President’s schedule\n                 -Forthcoming meeting with Charles W. Colson\n\nBull left at an unknown time before 1:20 pm.\n\n             Vietnam negotiations\n                 -Security\n                 -Expectations by Vietnamese\n                 -Meetings between US and Vietnamese\n                     -Time\n                     -Length\n\nKissinger left at 1:20 pm.","filename":["359-016.mp3"],"tapeStart":"","tapeEnd":"","participantsList":["Nixon, Richard M. (President)","Kissinger, Henry A.","Bull, Stephen B."],"prevCode":"359-015","nextCode":"359-017","transcript":[{"start":11.12,"end":18.5,"text":"and that they were embarrassed that there was a loose man"},{"start":74.31,"end":98.65,"text":"You just probably think you're right because they want this."},{"start":105.82,"end":122.67,"text":"Oh, boy."},{"start":122.69,"end":122.85,"text":"Oh, God."},{"start":141.75,"end":167.84,"text":"But you know, you might try to think how you can break it down."},{"start":167.86,"end":169.9,"text":"But I'm beginning to think, first of all, Bob Haldeman agrees with me in announcing a two-day meeting."},{"start":169.92,"end":170.32,"text":"Oh, yes."},{"start":170.34,"end":170.76,"text":"It's that in itself."},{"start":170.78,"end":170.94,"text":"Oh, yes."},{"start":171.48,"end":173.49,"text":"Yeah, sure."},{"start":173.51,"end":181.55,"text":"Bobby Schultz of the Nationalist Times had told me that I might be going to prison."},{"start":181.57,"end":183.11,"text":"He said, look, my colleague said that he's running a high note in the Senate."},{"start":224.65,"end":241.52,"text":"And, you know, under the pretext they've already found a new secure house, I couldn't bother."},{"start":241.54,"end":242.26,"text":"I said, I'll find a house next time."},{"start":242.28,"end":243.8,"text":"And they said, oh, they found a house, and they can't even get it from here."},{"start":243.82,"end":244.48,"text":"They can't even get it from here."},{"start":244.5,"end":245.56,"text":"Where have they ever done before?"},{"start":245.58,"end":245.92,"text":"Oh, that's a lie."},{"start":245.94,"end":246.65,"text":"Just so they don't expect anything."},{"start":255.55,"end":259.44,"text":"Oh, absolutely."},{"start":259.46,"end":260.24,"text":"Absolutely."},{"start":260.26,"end":261.53,"text":"You can talk to Dave."}],"aiSummary":{"text":"President Nixon and Henry Kissinger met to coordinate the security and public messaging surrounding upcoming secret negotiations with North Vietnamese officials. They discussed the timing of these meetings in relation to Nixon's IMF speech and his re-election campaign, while also considering how to manage media inquiries and leaks regarding these diplomatic efforts. The pair consulted with Stephen B. Bull regarding the President's schedule to ensure these sensitive discussions remained prioritized and secure.","topics":["Vietnam negotiations","Henry Kissinger","Diplomatic security","Media relations","1972 election","North Vietnam"],"generatedAt":"2026-04-06T16:51:09.949Z"},"topicSlugs":["vietnam-negotiations","henry-kissinger","diplomatic-security","media-relations","1972-election","north-vietnam"],"audioDurationSec":266,"audioFiles":[{"file":"359-016.mp3","bytes":6394774,"durationSec":266.37,"bitrate":192054,"missing":false}],"audioIsShared":false,"audioProbedAt":"2026-09-18T02:19:44.539Z","audio":["https://nixon.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/audio/359-016.mp3"],"url":"https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/359-016","nixonLibraryUrl":"https://www.nixonlibrary.gov/white-house-tapes/359/conversation-359-016","license":"Public domain (U.S. Government work). AI-generated fields (transcript, aiSummary) are provided as-is without warranty."}